The Fashion Informer

Happy Friday!

Introducing…Nomi Network

The Label: Buy Her Bag Not Her Body
Based In: Cambodia
Designed By: Nomi Network bags are designed by Supei Liu (a former corporate retailer)  and produced by a collective of women who are survivors of sexual slavery and trafficking in Cambodia (the name Nomi is a phonetic interpretation meaning "know me, know my story, know my success"). "About three years ago, my friends and I teamed up to start Nomi Network together," the New York-based Liu told The Fashion Informer. "We believe that in order to prevent human trafficking and help the survivors get reintegrated back into their communities, a sustainable social model needs to be in place to create jobs. Since I've worked with products for the last 12 years, the Nomi Network business model fell naturally in place with my previous experience." One hundred percent of the profit from the sale of Nomi Network bags is reinvested into training and career development programs for women.
Looks Like: Cute totes, wallets, toiletry bags, cosmetic cases, iPad and laptop covers fashioned from locally-sourced recycled rice bags that are quilted and finished with decorative stitching and reclaimed lace. In addition to the grown-up styles, there's also an adorable—and very clever—children's backpack designed by Sitting Taller that holds kids' schoolbooks and other daily necessities, and comes with a Dacron-wrapped foam pad, allowing it to function as a booster seat when not in use as a carryall. "The beauty of our collection is a unique mix of the Nomi Network story and the collaboration between our volunteer design team here in the USA and the women producing them in Cambodia," says Liu. "The process of turning an old discarded rice bag into something pretty and functional again is almost like the process of watching how these women turn their lives around from victims to survivors." Nomi Network is launching a similar project in India later this year.
Sold At: The bags range from $12 to $78 and can be purchased online at Buy Her Bag Not Her Body. All proceeds go to training and career development programs for the survivors of sexual trafficking in Cambodia.

TFI on Rue La La: Tom Ford

Tom Ford recently brought his well-groomed self to the stage at 92Y, where Fern Mallis grilled him about life, love and the pursuit of happiness (not necessarily in that order). I covered it for Rue La La, and images from the evening—and Ford's recent collections—can be seen below.

Informed Obsession: Rachel Roy Dress

 Ah, wedding season. The love. The joy. The dilemma of what to wear if, like me, you're allergic to florals and traditional (read: girlie) summer dresses. It's not that I don't like dresses. I do—though I'm more much comfortable, and feel more myself, in pants—and the handful of dresses I do own (by designers like Shelly Steffee, Tess Giberson and Doo.Ri) are a bit too fashion-forward for the typical family wedding. What's an urban fashion lover to do? My solution came in the form of this Rachel Roy wrap dress, which is made of lightweight crinkled crepe with a shirttail hem, 3/4 sleeves and partially hidden self-belt. It will look great with my favorite Alexis Bittar turquoise jewelry, and is as comfortable as a bathrobe. Best of all, it's incredibly chic in a way that even the bride's grandma can understand. And did I mention it's currently on sale for $259 (from $428)? Sometimes good things really do come to those who procrastinate wait.

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

Meet Your Maker: Libertine

"It never starts with a color and it never starts with a graphic," Johnson Hartig explained of his design process. "It always starts with an idea and an emotion." 

I met Johnson, designer of the California-based label Libertine, over breakfast at the Regency Hotel—his crash pad of choice when visiting New York—a few weeks before the NYFW Fall 2012 shows to get the lowdown on his creative process and the evolution of the brand. (Johnson, who studied fine art and painting at Long Beach State, originally founded Libertine—famous for its graphic print, reworked vintage aesthetic—back in 2001 with Cindy Greene, who left to do her own thing in 2009.) 

"It usually begins by thinking things through that I had started the season before, and if something seems particularly strong that I’m already feeling good about, then I come up with more ideas," he said between bites of bacon and eggs while waiters swirled around us in the plush dining room, taking orders and refilling coffee cups. "I’ll kind of store those away thinking maybe it won’t come as easily next season and I’ll have these to rely on. That happens pretty much every season. So I’ll take those out of the closet and expand on them and just one thing leads to another…"

For fall 2011, his first show after a two-year hiatus from the runway, the high-spirited designer was inspired by the colorful Islamic tiles he'd seen while visiting mosques in Turkey. "For spring 2012, I thought that I would continue the emotion from fall in that the simplicity of the plaid and the colors appeal to me," he said. "But I knew that I couldn’t do anything very colorful for spring 'cause there had been such saturated color for fall. The idea of a black and white collection really appealed but I kept thinking I can’t do just black and white and then someone came to the studio [who really liked it] and it’s almost like they gave me permission to do a black and white collection. Then it just all came together."

This resulted in a winning array of pieces printed with circular, xo and barcode-like graphics, along with a skirt and t-shirt bearing the timely, tongue-in-chic slogan, "Tax the Rich More." Johnson clarified that the barcode print was not meant as a comment on our consumerist society, as I had assumed, but were "just graphic-y stripes."

As for the x's and o's, he added, "Sometimes when I’m at home and bored I'll put on music and paint. And I was flipping through this tablet that I’d done a few years before—I had painted all those x’s and o’s and stripes—and I thought these seem kind of interesting and fresh to me, and I took them to the studio and experimented with the Xerox machine and proportions. So it was something that I had done years before that I re-explored."

I told him the spring collection felt incredibly strong and cohesive.

"Well, that’s what I’m really good at—making something out of nothing," replied the multi-talented Johnson, who was an interior designer before turning to fashion. "I’m really good at taking these disparate objects and putting them together in a way that works. It’s the same with rooms—it’s just all a bunch of junk but [it's about] putting it together interestingly."

 For fall 2012, the designer found inspiration in the pile-it-on aesthetic of Eastern European gypsies, though the collection—full of heavily beaded dresses and skull and crossbone bedecked suits—was anything but literal. "I have 10,000 ideas a day that I could run with, so it really is more a process of editing and elimination and slowing my mind down," said Johnson with a laugh.

Between 90 and 95 percent of all Libertine pieces are one-of-a-kind, which means buyers scramble to be first to place an order post-show so their store has the pick of the litter (so to speak). In addition to Johnson, Libertine employs his assistant, Stephanie, and four or five interns. All of the label's signature silkscreening is done in-house "on a 10-year-old ironing board," as is the reconstruction and sewing of every single garment baring the Libertine label. 

"We’re really a tiny, tiny company, but we have a big impact for being such a small organization," the much-copied Twitter aficionado said, adding that he likes things to happen "really fast" and has no problem moving on if an idea's not working, which explains how his tightly-knit team creates 5,000 to 8,000 garments per year.

In a recent follow-up call, Johnson confided that for fall 2013, he found his muse in a "life changing" trip he took, alone, to India this past January. He also mentioned that Libertine's recurring tree branch motif was inspired by the switches his grandmother used to beat him with when he was a little boy (and he may have been laughing when he said it, but he was dead serious). 

"I know exactly what I want it to look like in my head," Johnson said of his collection as our breakfast wound down. "It’s much more complicated doing it the way I do it than with traditional designers because traditional designers can make something that they see, whereas I have to rely on the ability to find it, or something close to what I’m imagining. So it’s a bit more complicated."

I, for one, can't wait to see where Johnson's perception-meets-reality creative process leads him—and Libertine—come September.

1 = 1,000: A Rose Grows in Brooklyn

Introducing…Giejo

The Label: Giejo
Based In: New York
Designed By: Gabby Sabharwal. "The idea to create a swimsuit came about really as something that was initially just for me," said Sabharwal, who is a BCBG publicist by day, designer by night (Giejo is her childhood nickname). "I was looking for a new swimsuit for an upcoming vacation with my girlfriends.  We were going to St. Thomas to celebrate my 25th birthday and, of course, I wanted to look fabulous. I had always been drawn to the colorful prints of Missoni and the sleek silhouettes of Eres bikinis, but not to the price tags that came with them. The swimsuits available in my price range (think: VIX, J.Crew, Target, H&M, Ella Moss, Splendid, American Apparel) were so ordinary, and I always knew I could count on seeing another girl wearing the same one.  I thought why not make my own?" And that, dear reader, is what she did. 
Looks Like: Fun, cool and quirky, just like the woman who created them. "The collection is very reflective of my own personal style," said Sabharwal. "I love to layer and mix and match patterns and textures when I dress and I really kept that in mind when choosing the fabrics and prints for my suits. Of course, the colors were equally important but the fabrics were really where my story began.They had to be different and stand apart from what was on the market. They are not overtly sexy or over the top. They are trendy and interesting; fashion forward without trying too hard. My suits make a statement but are simple and flattering." So while the majority of Giejo swimsuits feature two-tone bottoms paired with contrasting tops (heavy on the stripes, florals, tie-dye and bold Aztec prints), the cuts are classic (bandeaus, triangle tops, boy briefs and side ruches bikinis). And pattern-phobes can match their top and bottom for a more traditional—but still uber-stylish—look. "The Giejo girl is fashion forward and wants to stand out," adds Sabharwal of her target customer. "She's aware of the trends but is also price conscious, and wants an affordable line that is fashionable and not mass market." Done and done. For summer 2012, Giejo is unveiling an exclusive collection for Barneys (set to hit stores later this month), and for spring/summer 2013, Sabharwal plans to introduce four new styles, along with a chic maillot and beach-to-brunch coverups.
Sold At: The Giejo collection retails from $76 for a bottom to $108 for a top. The collection is sold at Barneys New York and boutiques such as Dagny & Barstow, Creatures of Comfort and Dear Fieldbinder in New York, Madison in California, Tenet in South Hampton and the Surf Bazaar in Montauk, and online at Giejo.

TFI on Dossier: Stephen Galloway's Fashion/Dance Connection

Here's a little sneak peek of my piece on designer/dancer Stephen Galloway, exploring the connection between fashion and dance, which appeared in the spring 2012 issue of Dossier.

Happy Friday!

photo courtesy Christian Louboutin